CNBC tournament attempts to determine best minor league logo

Here’s a little tidbit for those who love the fun of NCAA tournament brackets but don’t really like basketball.

On his Sports Biz page, CNBC’s Darren Rovell set up an NCAA tournament-style bracket pairing off what he believes to be the 64 best minor league baseball logos.

The best part of the contest, which allows fan voting to determine which logos advance, is that Rovell included independent teams. They have shown well. Here is CNBC’s slideshow featuring the 64 contestants.

The Northern League’s Joliet Jackhammers actually grabbed a No. 1 seed. Though the Jackhammers didn’t live up to their billing, there may be an all-independent league final. The Frontier League’s Southern Illinois Miners have already advanced to the championship game. The Miners will face the winner of the winner of the current Wichita Wingnuts (American Association) vs. Clinton LumberKings (Midwest League) contest.

Believe it or not, the Lumberkings overcame controversy to reach the final four.

Their elite eight opponent, Quad Cities, sent out a press release questioning how the LumberKings logo became so beefy. The LumberKings new logo (gold crown) and old logo are at the top of this page.

“I’m not going to point fingers, but I’ve had a lot of people asked me if I’ve noticed a change,” River Bandits Vice President and General Manager Kirk Goodman said in the release. “I really don’t think it’s fair to comment on the issue. I haven’t spent much one-on-one time with Louie so I’m not going to speak to his personal habits or the obvious change in his physique, head size, and appearance.”

Louie the LumberKing quickly answered the criticism.

"I'd like to say to all Clinton LumberKings fans, Minor League Baseball fans, and the public in general that not at any time did I take any performance-enhancing drugs,” Louie told CNBC. “Yes, I do look a little different this year, but all I did was change my facial hair and roll up my sleeves. I've always been muscular, and I have been subjected to the same drug tests as all players and mascots throughout baseball. I have even been tested all throughout high school and my college years at Paul Bunyan University."

As for The Dugout’s favorite logo, well let’s just settle on a final four:

Modesto Nuts: the logo is so funny and odd that The Dugout used to sneak onto people’s computers and make the Nuts logo the main image on their desktop.

Casper Ghosts: The logo may not be the best, but it glows in the dark. Pretty cool. Look for more on that in a soon-to-be published story on the main site.

Chattanooga Lookouts: It’s a classic. Somehow didn’t make the CNBC tourney.

Dayton: Dragon logo barely beats alien of Las Vegas.
Honorable Mentions: Lake Elsinore, Toledo, Everett, Las Vegas, and Reno.